THE RATINGS RACE: Week 12, when the renovators rebuilt Nine

Nine has announced that the judges in its version of Australia's Got Talent (dropped by Seven) will include Kyle Sandilands and Melanie Brown. This is either an inspired piece of bogan targeting, or the most self-destructive programming decision since Ten made The Renovators a turd sandwich within the MasterChef finale. Either way, it needs to be recognised in The Bogies, so we have revised the nominations. If you have voted already, you might wish to have a second bite. If you have not voted already, now is the time. To express your rage at the worst of Australian television, go to Bogie nom noms.

Check out the charts (below) to see how The Biggest Loser is going. Maybe it will pick up when Nine's renovation show is over. Or when Seven's cooking show is over. Or never.

Would you prefer a photo of muscular people or fat people? These are the Biggest Loser trainers.

Sunday was a big viewing night, as demonstrated by the number of shows that pulled more than a million viewers in the mainland capitals. One of those shows was the final of MasterChef: The Professionals. But Ten will need to run a lot of make-good advertising during other shows, to compensate for the times it went below half a million.

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What Australia watched, week ending March 23

Description Total Sydney Melbourne Brisbane Adelaide Perth

SPOILER ALERT: Rhys, the bloke on the left, won Masterchef The Professionals.

OzTAM Overnights, mainland capitals. Copyright OzTAM Pty Limited 2013. The data may not be reproduced, published or communicated (electronically or in hard copy) without the prior written consent of OzTAM.

This is the daily update of The Sun-Herald's Tribal Mind column by David Dale, who teaches Communications at UTS, Sydney. He is the author of The Little Book of Australia - A snapshot of Who We Are (Allen and Unwin). For continuing conversation about Australian attitudes, bookmark The Tribal Mind.

9 comments so far

It's heartening to see that "Laughing at the Fatties" appears sunk from launch!

Commenter

davo

Location

here

Date and time

March 18, 2013, 2:58PM

Its not that TBL is necessarily a bad show (dicuss...), its just the nature of TV and audiences now. People are fickle and content is massive. Shows, especially reality-based shows, only get so long before the concept becomes tired, and TBL has reached this point where the voyeuristic watching of fat people getting thinner (or not) is old. Producers can try all the shark-jumping tricks in the world to maintain ratings, but when people are bored, they are bored, and you cant put lipstick on a pig. Scrap TBL for something fresh

Commenter

Jesterhat

Location

Newcastle

Date and time

March 19, 2013, 4:00PM

Like a "star" diving into a pool?OMG. Ch 7 what are you thinking?

Commenter

Jen13

Date and time

March 20, 2013, 10:14AM

Re 'Celebrity Plop', I just saw the promo "cast" photo in the SMH and it's one of the saddest things I've ever seen. Why Josh Thomas has volunteered I'll never understand. 'Please Like Me' is quite nuanced and tender and poignant (even though no-one is watching it), and an accomplishment for someone so young, well-written etc etc... and then he goes in that. WTF?

Re 'The Biggest Loser', yes it is a bad show. I don't hate fat people, just fat people who do nothing to help themselves until it's televised. The ads for it make me throw up a little in my mouth and every time one comes on I either change the channel or mute it. I cannot stand the whining, the weeping, the sookiness, the footage of someone settling down to consume a five-litre tub of home brand ice-cream. Inspirational it ain't. Not sure if it's meant to be, or we're meant to feel sorry for them, or repulsed, or what. I don't get it. And Norman Swan should be ashamed of being associated with it.

I'm completely done with Australian "reality" shows but it seems to be all Australian commercial stations can make anymore. It's embarrassing.

Commenter

darren

Date and time

March 20, 2013, 12:56PM

It has become necessary to revise the Bogie nominations to include Celebrity Plop (and to give Kyle Sandilands another chance at The Black Bogie, now that he's on Nine's version of Australia's Got Talent). If you have not yet voted for the worst of TV, go to Bogie nom noms.

Commenter

Tribal Mind

Date and time

March 21, 2013, 10:18AM

Just a quick kudos to Channel 10. I believe NCIS actually started at 8:30 pm (by our clock) last night.

Very rare for FTA in prime time. Well done.

Commenter

ozpuck

Date and time

March 20, 2013, 12:37PM

Highlights this week: The Walking Dead had me gasping out loud, sending my poor dogs cringing in terror too!Also I have Sad Simon and the lovely Julia to thank for the entertaining television yesterday, which finally knocked that damn Pope off the news - even SBS, the official voice of the Vatican! (We had been boycotting SBS news, since the smoke signals when it should have all been over til next time).Pollies heading off for another 7 weeks hols, we should all be so lucky.Is anyone actually running this lucky country?

Commenter

Jen13

Date and time

March 22, 2013, 12:38PM

Good grief, I go away for a week and this is what happens? Nine are bringing back Kyle? And the Spice Girl? And what is the deal with that pic for a new show? I don't get it. What is celebrity splash and why would anyone care?

Think I will go back to the wilds of Tassie where you can't get anything but the ABC and SBS.

Commenter

em

Date and time

March 25, 2013, 3:24PM

Should Mel B be rewarded for being sneaky and breaking her contract with Seven to sign a bigger contract with Nine? Or should she be forced to fulfil her contract with Seven and punished for being so greedy?

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